There's Hope
by purple.queen6
Summary: Danny learns a thing or two about hope.DL


**AN: Hey guys, this is a oneshot set after Run Silent, Run Deep. It is based on the song There's Hope, by India Arie.**

**Disclaimer: I don't own CSI:NY or There's Hope**

Danny Messer tentatively walked into his brother's hospital room, where he lay in a coma.

"Hey Louie," Danny said, sitting in a nearby chair, "Um, I don't really know what to say, the doctor said it might help if I talked to you. It's funny, Montana said the same thing to me, right before the doctor talked to me."

Danny took Louie's hand and said, "Look, Louie, you need to wake up. Not just for me, For Ma, she's been through a lot with Pa, and I don't want her to have to go through losing you too," Danny and Louie's father was murdered because of his gang connections ane their mother had never really gotten over that.

"Anyway, I owe you a lot, you saved my job. Speaking of my job, there's a new girl, Lindsay," Danny said, imagining his brother's response to that. He would either snicker, and tease Danny about having a crush, or ask for her number.

"She's special, I've never met anyone like her before. She's really pretty, but still smart. And wise, too. Remember when we were little. And we both wanted those bikes. How, we always wanted the newest toy guns and cars. I thought that I needed a lot to keep me happy, that a little was over rated and a lot was too complicated. No matter what, I wasn't happy with what I had. Zero didn't satisfy me, and a million didn't make me happy. But Montana taught me that none of that matters. It's all about your perception. It doesn't matter if you're a pauper or a superstar. It's not about the size of you car, but it's about the size of the faith in your heart. And I have faith in you Louie."

Danny stared at Louie's face, silently willing his eyes to open. Lindsay had taught him a lot about life. She seemed to know a lot about grief and more importantly, hope. Danny distinctly remembered the time Lindsay had first taught him about hope.

_Flashback:_

_Danny had been in a bad mood all day and Lindsay was growing aggravated with him._

_"Danny! Danny Messer!" Lindsay called in the hallway, intent on figuring what was up with Danny._

_"What Montana? Listen, I'm not really in the mood to talk right now," _

_"What is wrong with you today?" Lindsay asked._

_"It's nothing, Montana. You don't have to worry about me." Danny said, brushing off her question._

_"No, Danny, something is wrong. You can tell me, you know. You can trust me," she said quietly._

_"I know, it's just, I've just been a little tight with money, it seems like prices on everything are rising. The insurance for my bike just rose for no reason, and so is the rent on my apartment."_

_"Does all of that really matter? You don't need a lot of stuff to make you happy," Lindsay said, trying to make Danny feel better, "Just have hope that everytihng will get better."_

_"But, Linds, it would make me happy if I had a place to live."_

_Lindsay tried to ignore the fact that her heart skipped a beat when he called her Linds, and said, "I know, but look on the bright side. It doesn't cost a thing to smile. You don't have to pay to laugh. You better thank God for that."_

_Danny couldn'thelp but smile at her words. Lindsay Monroe, ever the optimist. She always made him smile, and she was right she made him happy, and he got to see her everyday, and didn't have to pay a thing for that._

Danny was pulled out of his reverie by a male nurse who walked in to check on Louie.

"Do you think he'll wake up?" Danny asked him.

"Just have hope, son," said the nurse, who looked like he was in his early-sixties.

"That's not the first time I've heard that," Danny said, chuckling.

"Well, whoever told you that is very wise," the man said, "I'm Charlie, by the way."

"Danny Messer. And yeah, the girl who told me that is very wise. But sometimes I question why God puts us on this earth. I mean, all everyone does is suffer. There's no way to escape suffering."

"Let me tell you something, boy." Charlie said, sitting next to Danny, "My family is from Brazil. Years ago, when I was 25, I went to Brazil, where I met a man. He had this, way, of making me feel like I could do anything. It's hard to explain, but he told me he wanted to sing. He lived a simple life, he was extremely poor. Not to mention he was blind. And, i don't know if it was his blindness that made him so wise, but it certainly didn't keep him from seeing the light. He asked me what it was like in the USA. And like a fool, all I did was complain. He said living here on this earth is paradise because he believed paradise is in your mind. Just think about that, son, but I have to get back to work."

Charlie left to go check on other patients while Danny thought about what he'd said.

Danny stayed at the hospital for an hour more, before heading home. But he couldn't shake what Charlie said from his mind. That blind man in Brazil was right. Look on the bright side of things and then your in paradise. Danny managed to fall asleep for a few hours, but was awaken by the ringing of his cell phone.

"Messer," he said, grumpily, thinking he'd been called in.

"Danny," His mother answered, and it sounded as if she was crying, "It's Louie. He's gone. My baby's gone."

"Ma, it's gonna be okay, where are you," he asked, knowing she shouldn't be alone.

An hour later, Danny arrived at the hospital to see his very distressed mother sitting in one of the plastic chairs. He went up and hugged her, and then realized she wasn't alone. There, of all people was Lindsay Monroe.

"Lindsay, what are you doing here?"

"I came to show you the tape on Louie. I found your mom her all alone,"Lindsay said, sadly, "She said you were coming, and I didn't have to stay, but nobody should be alone to see someone close to them die."

Lindsay's eyes momentarily glazed over, as if she was deep in thought about something.

"Thanks, Lindsay. That means a lot to me."

Over the next few days, Danny took time off work, to make sure his ma was okay. Lindsay had stopped by a few times, and his Ma had taken a liking to her, suggesting to Danny that he should ask her out.

It wasn't until a week after Louie's death, when Danny could speak to Lindsay alone. She had come over to his apartment and was now seated on his couch.

"Are you mad at me?" she asked him quietly.

"No, of course not! Why would you think that?" Danny replied, shocked.

"Well, I told you that if you talked to Louie, he would have a better chance of waking up."

"Montana, I could never be mad at you. It made me feel better to talk to him, and I know that he wasn't alone when he died. I just can't really wrap my head around the fact that he's gone, though. How could somebody do that to another?" Danny asked.

"Danny, this world isn't perfect. Every time I turn on the t.v. somebody's acting crazy. But only if you let it, it will drive you crazy. You can't let the men that did that to Louie drive you crazy. You have to take that power they have over you back. Sure, gas prices keep rising, and the government keeps on lying, but no matter what we have to keep on surviving, no matter how hard life gets. We have to keepliving our truth and do the best we can do. Whether it's standing up for rights, shining your light, our showing the world your smile."

"Thanks, Linds, I can always count on you to make me feel better."

"I should go," Lindsay said standing up, "You should go see your mother, I bet it's hard to lose a child."

"Alright. Bye Lindsay," Danny said standing up and giving her a hug.

"Bye Danny," Lindsay said walking out his door," And remember, no matter what remember this; there's hope."

With that, Lindsay walked out the door, leaving Danny with a large grin on his face, because he knew her words were true.

_There's Hope._

**AN: I hope you enjoyed!**


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